New academic session commences nationwide from today

Kathmandu: The new academic session has officially begun today across the country.

As per the government’s decision, the school-level academic session has been starting annually from April 15. Previously, the session began on April 2, but the date was revised to prevent private schools from enrolling students before the completion of annual examinations and to address challenges arising from unstable fuel supply. However, with facilitation from some local levels, student admissions had already taken place before April 15.

On April 22, the government issued instructions to refund admission and other fees being charged unlawfully by private (institutional) schools. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology urged all concerned local levels to initiate legal action to ensure the refund of such fees, including those not specified under the Institutional School Fee Determination Criteria Directive, 2072.

The Supreme Court had earlier issued an interim order prohibiting schools from publishing admission notices before the publication of annual examination results, the start of the academic session, and the issuance of required original certificates, including mark sheets, as per Rule 78 (1) (c) of the Education Regulations, 2059 BS. A single bench of Justice Bal Krishna Dhakal directed that the student admission process must be conducted only after the academic session begins in accordance with the regulations. Previously, the academic session used to commence from Baisakh 20.

The order also emphasized the need for coordination between examination results, the academic session, and the issuance of necessary certificates. The court instructed the concerned authorities to act in accordance with prevailing laws and directed the respondent to submit a written response within 15 days.

In a notice issued on Chaitra 20 by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Education Development and Human Resource Development Center, Sanothimi, Bhaktapur, it was directed that admissions be conducted only after the completion of annual examinations, publication of results, and the commencement of the new academic session 2083 BS.